After watching the semi-enticing ‘7 years in Tibet’, I have decided to completely commit myself to watching every Brad Pitt movie in no particular order. Here are my thoughts on the first batch of Brad:

‘MoneyBall’

Billy Beane is the ultimate story of failing to meet grand expectations. I can’t think of a moment that would compete on a scale of frustration. His inability to perform at the standards he was accustomed to was not a conscious decision nor was it because of any new strategy or unexpected variable. It wasn’t a decision like choosing to leave the club that drafted him or a personal one like choosing to have an affair. It was a mentally excruciating ordeal that was completely out of his control – The sudden saga of no longer being any good has no equal. He will forever be labelled a bust of the greatest proportions. There are few experiences in sports that would be as difficult to overcome as this. To suddenly have the results drastically dwindle for every other past experience would be overwhelming and yet Beane finds a way to squeeze out success in the pros, just in a much different setting. This is certainly one of Pitt’s greatest films.

‘Burn after Reading’

-Brad Pitt’s ability to manipulate his age is second to none. He looks no older than 28 years old in this film despite being well into his 40s

-By far the funniest scenes are of Pitt dancing like a goof

-John Malkovich has some of the greatest anger outbursts in Hollywood. He is the white man’s Samuel L. Jackson.

-This film has potentially the worst ending of Pitt’s career (at this point anyway)

‘Ocean’s 11’

-Likely Brad’s worst fashion/hair phase. The 2000s showed no mercy and even poor Bradley was not spared. His hair urges to grow long but is haulted by the quirky and bizarre trends that defined the new millenium.

-RIP Bernie Mack. Truly hilarious.

‘The Devil’s Own’

-Pitt’s worst attempt at an accent.

-The film had the ingredients to be an Irish powerhouse but was petrified to be too dark and focused heavily on contrived, light-hearted moments that did nothing for the story’s development. We needed to feel Pitt’s character’s pain, but we rarely were given the chance because scenes were either rushed (the opening break in/murder scene) or time is allotted to the police department’s pursuits of no-name crooks. The audience immediately recognized that Harrison Ford’s character was a fine chap, yet the film repeatedly drove this point home instead of defining Pitt’s character as a hell-raising Irish terrorist with a plethora of reasons to be pissed off at the world.

-Pitt reminds us how great an Irish sweater with a leather jacket can look

-A fantastic time warp back to the simplicity of the 90s’. When the father warns the daughter that she is only allowed five more minutes on the telephone, they both know he has the ability to cut the conversation off at any time, unlike a buzzing cellphone that knows no boundaries.

-This story doesn’t have a happy ending. “It’s not an American story…it’s an Irish one.”